Mumbai

Activists of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena staged protests in Mumbai and neighbouring Thane on Saturday against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, following a demonstration by Youth Congress workers at the AI Summit in New Delhi.

In Mumbai, BJP workers waved black flags at Gandhi’s vehicle near the Mulund toll plaza when he was travelling to Bhiwandi in Thane district to appear before a court in connection with a 2014 defamation case filed by an RSS activist. Police had made elaborate security arrangements to prevent any untoward incident during his visit.

Shiv Sena MP Naresh Mhaske demanded that a sedition case be registered against Gandhi, alleging that the Congress leader frequently makes “anti-national” statements and disrupts parliamentary proceedings.

Protesters accused Gandhi of opposing initiatives of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and attempting to tarnish India’s image on national and international platforms.

“Rahul Gandhi continuously opposes whatever the Prime Minister does, even on matters of national importance. The Youth Congress protest at the AI Summit was an attempt to malign India globally. That is why we are protesting against him,” a BJP worker said.

On Friday, a group of Indian Youth Congress activists staged a ‘shirtless protest’ inside the exhibition area of the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, walking around holding T-shirts with slogans critical of the government and the India-US trade deal.

Meanwhile, the Thane district unit of the Shiv Sena organised a separate protest at the busy Tembhi Naka area, where party workers raised slogans against Gandhi and staged a symbolic “jode maro” agitation.

Addressing reporters, MP Mhaske said that while India’s technological achievements were being showcased at the AI Summit, Congress workers chose to “embarrass the nation” through their protest.

“Our country is progressing steadily under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership. Instead of supporting India on a global platform, Congress workers indulged in acts aimed at damaging the country’s reputation,” Mhaske said.

He also made controversial remarks about Gandhi’s mental state and claimed that, on the directions of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, arrangements had been “symbolically” made for his treatment in Thane.

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Mhaske reiterated his demand for strict legal action against Gandhi, alleging that his statements and conduct amounted to attempts to obstruct the nation’s progress.